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Stearns County, Minnesota
Stearns County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota, founded in 1855.Minnesota Government Series, State Symbols As of 2010, the population was 150,642. Its county seat is Saint Cloud . It was named after Charles Thomas Stearns, a local politician. Stearns County is part of the Saint Cloud Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The area that is currently defined as Stearns County was once occupied by several indigenous tribes, such as the Sioux (Dakota), Chippewa (Ojibwe) and Winnebago (Ho-chunk). The first large immigration was of German Catholics in the 1850s. Early arrivals also came from eastern states. Originally, the county was to be named Stevens County to honor Governor Isaac Ingalls Stevens who conducted an area expedition in 1853. However, due to a clerical error, the county was named Stearns after Charles Thomas Stearns who was a member of the Territorial Council. (Later, the area two counties west was named Stevens County, to compensate for this clerical error.) Geography According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of , of which (or 96.73%) is land and (or 3.27%) is water. Topography & Vegetation The East border of Stearns County is the Mississippi River. The land consists of rolling hills, scenic lakes, and woodlands of a mixture of coniferous and deciduous trees. There are 166 lakes in the county of Stearns. Major highways Adjacent counties *Todd County and Morrison County (north) *Benton County and Sherburne County (east) *Wright County (southeast) *Meeker County and Kandiyohi County (south) *Pope County (west) *Douglas County (northwest) Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 133,166 people, 47,604 households, and 32,132 families residing in the county. The population density was 99 people per square mile (38/km²). There were 50,291 housing units at an average density of 37 per square mile (14/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.99% White, 0.83% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 1.58% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. 1.37% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 56.9% were of German and 9.4% Norwegian ancestry according to Census 2000. There were 47,604 households out of which 35.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.30% were married couples living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.50% were non-families. 23.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.15. data.]] In the county the population was spread out with 25.70% under the age of 18, 16.10% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 19.10% from 45 to 64, and 11.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 101.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $42,426, and the median income for a family was $51,553. Males had a median income of $34,268 versus $23,393 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,211. About 4.30% of families and 8.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.70% of those under age 18 and 8.60% of those age 65 or over. Cities and towns † Although mainly in Stearns County, the city extends into a neighboring county. ‡ These cities are based in an adjacent county, but extend into Stearns County. See also *National Register of Historic Places listings in Stearns County, Minnesota References and notes External links * Stearns County official website * Sartell Historical Society - Sartell, MN * Stearns History Museum official website Category:Stearns County, Minnesota Category:St. Cloud metropolitan area Category:Minnesota counties on the Mississippi River